For the Love of a Dragon
by vivalarapture
Summary: Soul has been ignored and disliked by the dragons that inhabit his homeland for his entire life. He's learned to deal with the fact that he's just about the only person who doesn't have his own dragon. That is until he lands half dead on Maka's doorstep, the strangest dragon he's ever met, and he seems to be just the human she needs to help her.
1. Chapter 1

**For The Love of a Dragon**

**By vivalarapture**

**Authors Notes- Just a heads up, this title might change. Although the acronym for it is ftload. fat. load. So maybe I'll keep it just for that reason. **

Going into town was, in Souls opinion, the worst chore he could be forced to complete. His brother would shove him out of the house with a basket, a list and some coins, slamming the door and locking it behind him. His brother, Wes, would complain that he always did the hunting so that left Soul to do the shopping.

Soul grumbled angrily as he walked down the winding dirt path from he and his brothers house into town. He furiously kicked at a pebble in his path, cursing when it bounced off a tree and back into his forehead. He rubbed a hand over his face, his cursing becoming more colorful when he noticed a smear of blood on his hand which he quickly wiped on his trousers.

He could hear dragons calling out in the trees around him, but he paid them no mind. The only dragons in this area were tame, nearly house pets, and he had nothing to worry about. He had to stop himself from swinging the basket in his grasp, flushing and muttering about how uncool it was that he had to do woman's work.

Soul's anger was officially drained as he shuffled his feet, kicking up clouds of dirt. He supposed he shouldn't blame Wes so much. They had been living by themselves on the outskirts of town for eight years now since their parents died. The island they lived on was desolate of many things, and it was tough on the brothers.

Their home was aptly named, the Island of Death, and it was filled with forests, caves, and the occasional cliff face that would pop out of nowhere and lead you straight to your demise.

A large pale green dragon flew dangerously close above Souls head, his clawed feet banging him on the back of his cranium as it passed by. Soul caught himself just before he face planted into the dirt, sputtering and raising his fist to the dragon who didn't even seem to notice him.

"Fuckin' over grown lizard! Watch where you're going!"

The dragon didn't even flinch, and Soul was convinced he didn't even hear him. He sighed and picked up the basket he dropped, continuing his trek into town. Dragons always seemed to ignore him. Nearly everyone on the island, and also on neighboring islands, had their own dragons. Supposedly the creatures were kind, intelligent and loved humans.

Soul scoffed, glaring at another tiny snake like dragon who scuttled past him without looking up. They loved every human except for him. His brother had vied with Soul to get their own dragon, but Soul was adamant about not keeping a dragon on their land. He didn't need to add another name to the list of creatures, human and dragon alike, that pretended like he was apart of the background or tried to kill him.

He noticed the edge of the town out of the corner of his eye, and hoped he could make it home before the storm came. There were menacing black clouds hovering over the mountains to the South, and he didn't want to be caught in that by himself.

As Soul walked into town, he took in the sights, trying not to be in awe at how beautiful the different dragons looked, perched on the roofs of clustered wooden houses.

He shook his head, resigned to ignore everyone like they ignored him. He wasn't sure how they managed to pass over him so quickly. Yes, there were people he talked to, maybe even a few he would consider acquaintances, but surely someone with white hair and red eyes demanded a little bit of acknowledgement.

Soul glanced down at the list his brother had given him, scanning the brightly colored stalls for what he needed. Maybe with all of the dragons roaming the streets, a human with sharp teeth just wasn't all that special.

Soul tossed a few potatoes into his basket, passing coins over to the stall owner who thanked him lightly. Maybe it was because he didn't make the effort?

Soul had to hold back a bark of angry laughter, knowing that wasn't the case. When he was younger he had tried so hard to find a niche in the town. His father had taught him how to use a sword, and Soul had worked hard to be of use to people. He would go into town everyday, hoping there was something he could do to help.

Everyday, he was turned down. Either his skills were too lax, his arms too skinny, his mind wandered too much, his teeth scared off customers, or the dragons didn't listen to him. At first, he was desperate and determined, and every rejection made him stronger. He would come home, his mother would have already milked the goats so he could have a warm beverage, and listen to how he was going to improve the next day.

Although the longer he failed, the harder it was to get back up. He would help his father with the farming and hunting every chance he got, but he knew his older brother was who would inherit their sparse crops. He would have to find something he was good at. Something he could devote his life to and enjoy doing until he was old and grey.

The people who lived on Death were content being on land and on sea, the upside to living on an island with an extensive fishing port, but Soul was never comfortable being on a boat. He had gone with his father and brother a few times, but always ended up hanging off the side of the bow, heaving his lunch into the sea.

His family was supportive, and they always assured him that someday he would find what he was meant to do.

His mother was a great dragon trainer, always happy to teach the younger generations a thing or two about the creatures they kept as pets and weapon partners. She never kept dragons at the house, though. She knew how potentially dangerous they could be, and seeing as how they all seemed to hold distaste for her youngest son, she kept her work separate from her home.

Souls steps were getting heavier the longer he browsed the stalls looking for the wares his brother needed. He didn't like to think about about his past, and sometimes he wished someone would just talk to him so he wouldn't have to be stuck inside his own head.

Soul side stepped to avoid another dragon barreling down the path, a boy around 10 on its back and cackling with glee as they raced down the streets. He rolled his eyes and picked out a new pair of slacks, quickly paying the woman behind the stand and turning to go home.

He rummaged through the basket, making sure he had everything on his list before heading in the direction of the woods. He noticed a dark skinned man with dreads throwing pieces of fish in the air for the two tiny dragons at his feet.

Soul let his lips curl up slightly into a smile as he waved to someone he actually knew.

"Hey Killik. How's it going?"

The man lifted his head, adjusting his glasses and grinning when he realized who it was, "Oh hey, Soul! Just feeding Fire and Thunder."

Killik pointed to the small dragons scuttling up his knees to get more food. He chuckled and dropped the last of the slab of fish on the ground. "What are you doing out in town?"

Soul walked over, but didn't get to close. He knew Killiks dragons were young, and they reacted even worse towards him than old grumpy dragons. "That's cool. I'm just doing some shopping for Wes. Hoping to get back as soon as I can. The rain coming, and you know.. Dragons."

Killik frowned sympathetically, knowing the odd relationship Soul had with dragons. They were around the same age when they started dragon training together, and he knew how horrible those few weeks had been. Soul eventually dropped out, but Killik always tried to stay close to him, knowing how hard it must be.

"I bet. Those storm clouds look pretty threatening over there, too. You'd better get back home before you get your _basket _wet."

Soul chuckled, waving him off, "Yeah, yeah yeah. You're just jealous because I look more manly with a basket than you do with your baby dragons."

Killik pointed down at the bright yellow and orange dragons playing at his feet, "Hey, don't doubt these guys. They're trained killers. Vicious."

Fire, the orange scaled dragon, flopped over onto his back and pawed at the edge of Killiks trousers, yawning widely.

Soul burst out laughing, holding his stomach, "Vicious, eh? Sure, he looks pretty scary to me."

Killik flushed lightly, leaning down to pat the dragons head, "Oh hush, someday when they're triple the size of your scrawny butt, you'll be scared."

Soul shook his head, still laughing, "I don't doubt it. Hey, I should still be scared even when they're not two feet long yet. They could probably still eat me."

Killik clicked his tongue disapprovingly, "No way. My dragons are well trained. No albino meals for them."

Soul nearly punched Killik in a good natured way before he noticed the female dragon, Thunder, glaring up at him, teeth bared, and he clenched his fist at his side. "Probably best. Well I'm going to head back before Wes has a hissy fit. I'll see you later."

Killik nodded, waving as Soul walked away. He bent over and flicked Thunder over the head, earning himself a glare, "Be nice, would you? He's not going to hurt us." Thunder huffed and blew a tiny plume of smoke through her nose in disbelief. Killik raised an eyebrow and brushed it off, grabbing another fish from his pack and tossing it onto the ground.

Soul had finally felt better when he talked to Killik, like he was an actual human capable of holding a conversation. Then that dragon had to go and glare at him. What did he ever do to those stupid reptiles? All he ever did was try to be friends with every stupid one when he was little, but they didn't want anything to do with him.

As rain started dripping onto his floppy white hair, he growled, any semblance of a good mood he felt while talking to Killik vanished. He picked up his speed as the rain did, trying to avoid the ominous dark clouds racing above his head.

He heard thunder crack a little to close for comfort and he broke out into a full run, his feet pounding on the damp earth beneath his feet. The wind was now howling around him, whipping the trees back and forth like twigs. He groaned as the rain increased its volume as well, pushing himself to go faster.

The basket was soaked and thumping against his thigh as he ran, but he was too wet and tired to care. He saw his tiny house in the distance, and Wes was outside, trying to pull his horse into the barn. Soul bit down on his tongue, praying that the animals were okay. As he approached, he tossed the basket under the roof of their front door before running over to Wes.

He had to yell over the wind, trying to get his brothers attention, "Wes! Do you need help?"

Wes flipped his head to the side, his pale colored hair whipping in his face, "The animals got out! I got most of them, but your horse ran towards the mountains!"

Soul froze, his eyes widening, "My horse?!"

That stupid horse was the only creature he ever met that didn't run at the sight of him. He wasn't going to let the creature get killed in the storm, "Which way? North or South mountains?!"

Wes bit down on his lip, struggling with the skittish black horse in front of him, "North."

Soul clenched his fists, cursing his dumb stallion. Of course he would run towards the North mountains. Where the creatures were less friendly, and the terrain even worse.

Soul helped shut the barn door as his brother shoved the horse inside, giving Wes a hard stare.

"I'm going after him."

Wes shook his head, reaching out to grab him, "Are you daft?! This storm is horrible and I'm not letting you go out to get him! We'll get another horse!"

Soul shoved his brothers hands off of his shoulders, hissing, "Yeah, a horse that will ignore every command I give and buck every time I try to get on him!"

Wes glared right back at him, his blue eyes icy, "You're not going out there."

Soul grinned, his sharp teeth bared in hostility, "Are you going to try and stop me?"

Wes lunged forward, trying to coral his brother towards the house like the other frightened animals. Soul ducked out of the way and tore down the dirt path leading towards the North mountains.

Wes cursed, trying to run forward until the barn door blew open and he had to leap forward and keep it closed. He squinted his eyes through the harsh rain, calling after his brother, "Soul! Please! Come back!"

Souls image was gone, veiled behind the sleet and wind pouring through the forest. Wes cursed again, banging his head against the barn door. Soul was the last family he had left, and he just let him run off towards the most dangerous part of the island. He banged his head harder, trying to stop the flow of tears running down his cheeks.

No one ever came back from those mountains. Let alone his unarmed, untrained and dragonless brother. Wes slammed the lock of the barn into place and stomped towards the house, roughly grabbing the basket Soul threw there and throwing the door shut behind him, rattling the house already leaning from the wind.

Soul raised a hand over his brow, trying to shield his eyes from the pounding rain. He knew it was stupid to go after the horse he affectionately named Oni, since he could occasionally be a little demon, but he couldn't stop himself. That horse was the only thing that kept him going some days. After his parents died, he couldn't seek comfort in Wes. His older brother had poured himself into hunting and farming, shutting Soul out completely for a while.

He had no dragon, he had no friends, and he felt so alone. He would sleep in Oni's stable more often than his own bed, talking and crying while the horse wuffed sympathetically into his hair.

Soul grit his teeth together, pushing himself to run against the wind. He was nearly thrown to the ground a few times, but he kept going. He called out for the horse, trying to scream loud enough to be heard over the wind whipping the breath from his chest.

After what felt like an eternity of running, the mountains loomed over his head, the cliff face jagged and seemingly unstable. There were roots tangled and squeezed into crevices up high, plants and trees waving in the wind. One of the trees about 50 feet above him was ripped from the horizontal space it had been growing, the wind fierce and angry, tumbling down and bringing boulders along with it.

Soul bolted from his spot, knowing it would soon be covered in the wreckage. He landed with a heavy "Oof!" on the ground when a rock pinned his leg down. He scrambled to push the rock away, dragging his aching leg behind him.

He flung his head back and forth, trying to find anything that would show him where Oni had gone. His eyes were burning and his leg felt nearly broken, but he pushed forward, yelling for his horse. He noticed a path winding up the mountain, with newly trampled brush lining the dirt. He grinned, pushing himself towards the path. Oni must have gone up trying to find higher ground.

Souls soaked trousers clung to his legs as he hobbled forward, hands grasping the trees around him to keep him stable. He ignored the throbbing of his leg and hoped that it wasn't badly hurt. He knew adrenaline was thrumming in his veins so he wouldn't feel the brunt of the injury yet. He was going to take advantage of that before it started hurting too much.

"ONI! You stupid horse! Where are you?!"

He continued calling out, but the storm was raging proudly, and he could barely see two feet in front of him. The path was nearing dangerously close to the side of the cliff, and he had to pull himself as close to the rock face as possible to keep walking.

His hope was dwindling quickly as he was nearly blown off the side of the mountain, knowing that Oni was not able to hold on like he could. Soul clenched his jaw and pressed forward anyway. Oni weighed much more than he did, maybe the horse was more stable in this storm.

The rock wall lining the path was closing in the farther he walked up, but he told himself there was still enough room for Oni to walk. He would not believe his only real friend had toppled to his death.

He increased his pace, digging his nails into his palms to try and ignore the pain in his leg. He had been at this for way too long, and the storm was still not letting up. His foot slipped, and he felt crumbling under his toes, the ground no longer under him. He lunged towards the cliff face, his fingers scrambling to catch hold of something that would keep him from falling.

Soul sliced his hand on a sharp edge, before feeling gravity push his body sideways. As he tumbled downwards, he tried to roll himself into a ball, holding onto his head for dear life. He could live with a few broken bones, but if he hit his head, he was a goner.

He caved into himself, feeling cracks in his bones and rips in his skin and he was pulled down. He felt a particularly sharp rock jab into his ribs, and he momentarily let go of his head, the pain too intense for him to handle. The next time he bounced onto the ground, his neck snapped back as his head cracked onto the ground.

Soul felt a curse bubble up in his throat but he couldn't push any sounds out, let alone breathe correctly. The skidding of gravel and dirt along his back made his eyes roll back into his head, and he was sure he was going to pass out.

Although it took him a moment, he realized the momentum he had gained from tumbling down the mountain had stopped. He tried to look around, but the pain was everywhere, and he didn't have enough strength to raise his head.

He peeled his eyes open, but all he could see was rock. There was a deep hole in the wall of the mountain where he lay. He must have not slipped far enough to fall again, the lip of the cave just long enough to jut out of the mountain face. Breathing was becoming increasingly difficult, and the black spots in his vision were flitting around faster, clotting up the sides of his eyes before pushing farther into his line of sight.

He took a shaky breath, as something golden started coming out of the cave. It was hard to make out, and there was a hollow buzzing noise ripping through his ears. He kept his eyes open for a few more seconds, trying to figure out if he was going to be eaten or saved.

The long elegant neck of a dragon caught his eye, and he turned his head as far as he could. The creature wasn't very big, but it was big enough to kill a helpless human. It had ashy yellow scales that seemed to ripple as it walked. It had two long spikes on either side of it's head, and seemed curious as to why there was a broken human on its doorstep.

Soul tried to chuckle at the confused expression on it's face, but ended up hacking up blood onto his shirt. His vision was nearly black now, and he was glad he wouldn't be conscious when he was being eaten alive. The last thing he noticed before he blacked out was the dragon. It was coming slowly closer. Not lunging to attack and not walking away like other dragons. Just walking closer, peering at him anxiously with intelligent green eyes.

**Authors Note- Yes, yes, I know what some people might be thinking. Why can't you finish a story without starting another one, vivalarapture?! BECAUSE REASONS. I hope you guys enjoy this, though. I'm super excited to finally be writing a dragon story. After I get over my insecurities with writing smut, IHTBY will be updated, once my beta stops acting like a dick, SE:NV sill be updated, and as soon as I can pull myself away from Tumblr, Reflex will be updated. Enjoy this in the meantime, though, please! This is meant to be a fic a little on the longer side, 20-30 chapters, so I hope you stick around. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Chapter 2

**For the Love of a Dragon**

**By vivalarapture**

**I want to thank XxXTinamoiXxX, Sailordeedlit, xXTheLegendXx, Waterdog, Guest and CheezeMonster for reviewing. You guys rock!**

**By the way, I currently don't have a beta, so I'm sorry if there's any little errors. If you would be so kind as to point them out in reviews, that would be great. Thank you!**

**Chapter two**

Death was not at all like Soul envisioned it. It was painful. There were no pearly gates, no golden staircase, and there was definitely no light at the end of the tunnel. He flinched, and felt a warm glow on his side. So maybe there was a light at the end of the tunnel. He struggled to open his eyes, focusing on the effort it took to unglue them.

He groaned at a flickering light a few inches from his head. Couldn't someone _turn down _that light at the end of the tunnel?

"So you're awake."

He flipped his head to the side, ignoring the achy feeling in his muscles. There was a woman standing over him. Okay, so maybe Heaven was real, she had to be an angel. She had long blond hair tugged up into pigtails, bright olive eyes and her hands were propped on her hips. She was garbed in a pale yellow dress that swung down below her knees.

"Are you an angel?"

Her face contorted into a mix of surprise and awe before she schooled her features into a scowl.

"An angel? Far from it, human."

Soul wiggled his fingers, confused at the pain that radiated up his arm. Wasn't dying supposed to get rid of the pain? He glanced around him, but he could only see the dim light reflect off of stone walls. There was a table with a candle near his right, and a few velvet benches to his left. He looked back up towards the figure in front of him, raising his eyebrows,

"Well if you're not an angel, who are you? You can't be the Grim Reaper, you're way too pretty."

Once again, the woman had to wipe the bewildered look off of her face before chuckling lightly,

"You're not dead, human. You almost were, I'll give you that, but you're very much alive now."

Soul let the other pale eyebrow graze his hairline, now officially confused, "I'm alive? So who are you?"

The woman grinned, a hint of malice underlying the green of her eyes, "Your new keeper."

Soul sat up quickly, putting a hand to his side when it started thrumming with pain, "You.. You what? Okay, I'm thankful for patching me up and everything, but I've got to get back to my home." He inhaled shakily, feeling his ribs contort to the new position.

The woman frowned, pushing his shoulder with more force than he thought she was capable of and slamming him back down onto the bench he was laying on.

"You don't seem to understand what I said, human. I am your keeper. I've been needing a weapon for far too long, and when you just fell on my doorstep, literally, I figured the Gods were smiling down on me. I mean, a human with madness _and_ a weapon soul? I hit the jackpot when I found you."

Soul looked up at her incredulously, trying to free the fog that was smothering his brain.

"What?! I have.. I mean.. What are you talking about?!"

The woman huffed, ruffling the thin blond bangs that framed her face, "Okay maybe I didn't hit the jackpot. You're kind of slow, human. Didn't you hear what I said? Your keeper, your meister, your owner, your dragon lord, whatever you want to call it. Don't all you humans have keepers these days?"

Soul's jaw dropped, but he refrained from sitting up again for fear she was going to throw him back down again. Dragon lord? What in the great world was she talking about?

"Okay, so maybe I am slow. I still don't know what you mean. What do you mean 'us humans'? You're human, too."

The woman giggled, covering her mouth with a dainty hand, "Oh, you're a silly one. I think I'm going to enjoy this. I'm not human, boy. Do you not remember me before you blacked out?"

A flash of ashy gold scales and green eyes flashed through Soul's head, making his fists clench and his heart beat a tad bit faster. "You can't be a dragon. I can see you plain as day, you're a human."

The woman smirked, throwing her arms out to the side, "Maka Albarn of the Golden Scales, Magic Dragon and human weapon meister, at your service." She giggled into her hand again, "Well, actually, you're at my service, but it wouldn't have sounded right if I said it like that."

Soul felt his jaw drop again as he gaped at the tiny blond in front of him. She couldn't weigh more than 110 pounds, there was no way this scrawny little thing was a dragon, let alone a Magic Dragon. They were just stories told to young kids to frighten them into doing their chores. They weren't _real_. He must have hit his head harder than he thought.

"A Magic Dragon? Yeah, right, you've got to be crazy. You know, I'm happy you helped me and all, but I really have to be getting home."

Maka slit her eyes, and she was before him in half a second, pushing him back down, "First of all, you're not ready to move yet. Second, when you do move, you won't be going back to wherever you came from. Third, little human, you might want to store away this little bit of information, it's not a good idea to _piss off a dragon_."

Before he could blink, her skin started shivering, pulling and twisting over her bones. Scales were beginning to form, and soon her body convulsed, growing up towards the high ceilings of the cave. He could feel his pulse quicken, and his hands clenched and unclenched as he watched the fully formed dragon loom over his head.

She let out a plume of smoke through her nose, baring her razor sharp teeth, "Like I said, human." She growled, her voice twisted from her human form and echoing through the room, "It's not a good idea to make something angry that could bite you in half."

She still wasn't the biggest dragon he had ever seen, probably around 10 feet tall as she stayed on her four legs, but watching the pretty human girl transform into a dragon before his eyes was not something he was expecting.

He let out a loud and very uncool yelp as he shoved himself off of the bench, landing hard on his tail bone and scrambling back against the wall of the cave.

Maka rolled her eyes, sitting onto her hind legs and staring at him pointedly, "I'm not going to eat you, stupid. You're too special to make a meal of. Not that I was ever fond of eating humans in the first place. Your kind is too stringy."

Soul was shaking as he pressed his back against the icy stone of the cave. The skin of his back that wasn't wrapped in bandages began to prickle, rising goosebumps on the rest of his body.

"You.. You're a.. You're fucking DRAGON?!"

Maka set back down onto her front legs, shifting back into her human form and fluffing her hair with a hand, "I tried to tell you that. Are all humans this stupid these days?"

Soul opened his mouth to speak, but no snarky comment followed, just an inarticulate, "Ehhh?"

Maka shrugged, walking forward and offering her hand out, "Well you need some work, but you'll definitely do. I'm taking it you don't already have a meister? I'm guessing all of the other dragons avoid you like the plague because of your weapon soul and the madness." She flipped her hair with a confident smirk curling on her lips. "They wouldn't know how to control that kind of power anyway."

When Soul didn't take her hand, she sighed and grabbed his arm, heaving him up and pulling him back to the bench, "I told you not to move yet. You're not very obedient. Just rest for a while." She flopped him onto the bench, brushing her hands together and sitting down on a bench across from him.

Soul was in shock. She was giving him a lot of information he just couldn't comprehend. Better to start with the basics.

"Weapon soul?" He muttered, still trying to gather the courage from her last display. Maka tipped her head to the side, peering at him curiously.

"You don't know, do you?"

Soul shook his head, glaring lightly, "Of course I don't. I have no idea what you're talking about. None of it!"

Maka raised her eyebrows, leaning back into the bench. "Oh, wow. I guess you really don't know. I suppose there hasn't been another Magic Dragon around these parts for a long time. I bet we're just legends and bedtime stories now." She chuckled, and Soul definitely caught the irony behind her words.

She put a finger to her lips and smiled, "Well let me start from the beginning. You, my little human, have a weapon soul. Which is quite rare, if my latest 100 year search tells you anything." She drummed her fingers on her knee, not even looking at Soul anymore, "Well, that's not exactly true. There are others, but none of them fit! I suppose it's hard for someone to resonate with me, because Kid just found _two_ matches! Even Black*Star found a match a few years ago, and I don't know how anyone could resonate with him. And-"

"Whoah, whoah, whoah, dragon. Can't you explain a little slower? And a little less cryptic?"

Maka waved him off, rolling her eyes, "I am explaining this perfectly, you're the one whose not paying attention."

Soul bit down on his tongue, remembering quite well the last time he said something snarky and nearly got his head bitten off.

"Just.. Start from the beginning? What do you mean by a weapon soul and madness?"

Maka edged closer, poking Soul in the chest, "Your soul! It's a weapon soul! Which means you amplify a dragons power far greater than a normal soul! Why do you think dragons hang around humans? For company?"

She snorted, and Soul had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing at her, "Oh please, no dragon actually enjoys the company of humans. For normal dragons, a human soul can increase speed and strength. For us Magic Dragons, you amplify everything. Without a human, our magic is severely hindered. Although, not just any human will do. We need a weapons soul."

The grin she was currently pointing towards Soul was downright terrifying, and now he could definitely see that she was a dragon.

"And about the madness?" She dug her finger into his chest again, making Soul flinch, "You have madness inside of you. Something dark and terrible, feeding on your heart and growing from your pain. Madness will make you strong. Nothing can harm a person who is insane, and that in a soul is something we've discovered to be very useful when captured."

Soul felt a shiver run down his spine, making his blood run cold, "You don't understand. I have to go back. My parents died a long time ago and my brother is all alone. And I have to find my horse! That's the reason I was even on this God forsaken mountain top!"

Maka shrugged, standing from the bench and stretching her arms above her head, "Well I'm sorry, but I need you. There's a dark force rising from lands to the West, and I need to be in peak condition to fight." She tapped him on the head as she passed, her voice taking on a sing song like quality, "And that means I need your soul!"

Soul brought his face down into his hands, shaking his head. There was no way this was really happening to him. He would be perfectly happy to go back to the days where he was brooding over not having any friends and helping his brother on the farm. He would never complain about not having a dragon ever again. They weren't worth it, he decided, glaring at Maka's back as she rustled around with some blankets in the corner.

Because now a dragon had him.

She turned around and tossed a few blankets at him, covering his upper half with fabric. He sputtered and threw them onto the ground, glaring up at Maka. She grinned and proceeded to lay a bear skin on the ground.

"You can make your bed here, human. I sleep up nearer to the entrance, so don't even think of getting passed me."

She tapped on her left ear, giggling, "You can't beat dragon ears!"

Soul rolled his eyes, and clambered off of the bench and onto the bear skin, covering himself in the plush covers.

"So am I meant to just stay in this cave for the rest of my life?" He spat, scowling up at Maka.

She grinned and waggled her finger, "No way! I haven't even been here that long. I was mostly just passing though on my way to meet with the others. We'll be leaving as soon as you're fit to travel. What a great coincidence that you landed here! I was planning on continuing on tomorrow."

Soul groaned loudly, covering his head with the blankets, "Yeah. What a good thing."

Maka chuckled, patting him on the head before padding to the other end of the cave, "Good night, human! Or.." She scratched her head and felt her cheeks heat up, "I totally forgot to ask your name. I guess I could just call you 'Human' for the rest of you life if you like?"

Soul flung his hand up over the blankets, feigning indifference, "Call me whatever you like. But my name is Soul."

Maka stopped dead, and broke out into peels of laughter, "Your name is Soul?"

Soul grumbled angrily under his breath, all too used to being made fun of for his parents odd choice in names, "Yes, what's it to you?"

Maka shook her head, trying to cover her laughter with a hand, "Oh nothing. I have to say, your parent's sure have a great sense for irony."

Soul rolled over to his side, covering his face with his arms, "Had. I told you, they're dead."

Maka bit her bottom lip, glancing over sympathetically, "Oh. Yeah, I'm sorry about that. I'll let you say goodbye to your brother if you'd like?"

Soul didn't answer, so Maka made her way to the front entry way, contemplating ways to get her new human to like her more. While Maka slept soundly into the night, Soul stayed awake, his mind scrambling to think of an escape plan.

**Authors note- So, this chapter has a lot of explaining. Answering some questions, and bringing up new ones. I hope you guys like this so far, because I'm having a ball. I absolutely love dragon!Maka. There are some amazing dragon!Soul stories out there, but personality wise, I always thought Maka was way more like a dragon. Haha. **


	3. Chapter 3

**For the Love of a Dragon**

**By vivalarapture**

**I want to thank both Guests, roro213421, XxXTinamoiXxX, Professor Maka, RPGNerd, GreatZero and Winterling4 for reviewing. It makes me so happy to know that people are enjoying this so far. I hope I don't disappoint!**

**Chapter Three,**

For the four days after waking up in the lair of a Magic dragon, Soul tried every method of escaping. Which was relatively difficult considering his ribs and head ached whenever he stood up from the pile of blankets Maka had proclaimed as his bed. He tried sneaking away when Maka was sleeping soundly by the entrance of the cave, but every time he got close, Maka would peek one eye up at him, glaring lightly.

The first time, he tried to run past her, only to have a huge golden tail swipe at his feet and had him smashing his already sore face into the stone floor. He flipped around to see Maka in dragon form, chortling merrily at his misery.

Smoke curled up over her nose and she blew a puff of fire at him. He had scrambled backwards, but the flame dissipated before it could get within a foot of him.

"What did I tell you, Soul? There's no beating dragon ears! Or tails, I guess."

She had changed back into her human form, small hands grasping her sides as she laughed loudly. Soul had grumbled angrily and shuffled back to the end of the cave. He wasn't going to try that again. He had to be stealthy.

Not that stealthy ever got him anywhere. No matter how quiet he tried to be, Maka would flick her dangerous green eyes over to him and growl a warning. He blamed his big feet for being so loud. Maka just thought it was hilarious.

The last time he tried to escape presented itself when Maka went out to go collect food. She shook her finger at him and chastised him for a good 10 minutes about the dangers of this mountain. She ended her speech with a pat to his head and a small smile as she sing-songed her threat,

"Don't try to leave while I'm gone. You'll regret it, I promise you!"

Soul had waited a few minutes after she left before bolting towards the entrance of the cave. His grin stretched across his face as he neared the entrance. He could finally leave! He needed to make up for lost time and search for Oni. He had to hope that his horse was still alive.

With the next breath, he found the front half of his body collide with something hard and strong. He was thrown backwards, and landed painfully on his rear. He grunted in pain, rubbing his backside before looking up at what he just hit.

Soul raised an eyebrow as he stood up, brushing off his pants. There was nothing there! He stepped forward, only to be thrown back once more. He let out a string of curses as he rubbed his nose, glaring at the entrance of the cave.

He was literally two steps from being outside! Two steps from his freedom and away from that crazy dragon! He inched closer, inspecting the air around him. There wasn't anything solid stopping him, nothing in his way. He tentatively put his hand out, feeling for the disturbance that caused him to crush his already aching body.

His hand collided with a solid surface, and suddenly the thought hit him harder than the wall did.

"SHE PUT UP A GOD DAMN INVISIBLE WALL?!"

Soul cursed and punched the wall, which proceeded to throw him backwards once again. He howled in pain as his sore rump was re-acquainted with the hard ground. He clenched his fists, roaring out every profanity he could remember. Standing was more difficult than before, and he had limped back to his nest of blankets, dejectedly falling face first and landing with a soft plop.

Maka had come back a few hours later with a basket of food she must have gotten from the market. Soul had flipped around to glare at her, which made Maka dissolve into a fit of giggles. He had demanded to know what was so funny, and she pointed to his nose.

"It looks like you didn't head my warning. I told you not to try and leave! I bet you were even running when you hit the barrier." She ignored him as he bared his teeth at her and tried to act menacing. It was a little difficult to be scary with a bruised nose and red cheeks while a dragon giggled above you.

He had simply flipped over and pressed his face into the blankets, hiding his blushing face. Maka cooed sympathetically as she tried to stop laughing, "Ohhh, poor little human. I tried to tell you! You've got to learn to listen to me!"

Soul didn't trust his voice so he just violently shook his head, pulling a blanket over his body and trying to ignore her intermittent giggles and half-hearted apologies.

The next morning was the fifth day he had been holed up in the cave, and he was aching to go outside. He was healing slowly, but his head didn't throb when he walked anymore, and he could eat without feeling sick.

Maka was sitting by the entrance to the cave, reading a worn leather book with fierce intensity. Soul took a deep breath and walked towards the entrance. Maka whipped her head around to give him a tired glare, "Are you going to try and escape again? I took down the barrier, but that doesn't mean I'm not quick enough to stop you. Again."

Soul winced at the memory of getting tripped and landing on his face. He shook his head, eyeing the soft light that drifted into the cave.

"I want to go outside. To my home. I can't stand being in this cave all the time. I can't just hole myself up and read for hours on end like you can. I'm sick of being stuck in here!"

Maka sighed and closed the book, giving him a hopeful smile, "You're almost completely healed, so it wont be but another day or so before we can head out."

Soul grit his teeth, close to gnashing them together, "I want to go outside! Today! I need to get back to my brother! He is probably sick with worry by now!"

Maka set her book down and stood to face him, her face blank but her voice was a pitch above normal, "I told you when we leave that we can see your brother and you can tell him goodbye!"

Soul stomped his foot, not caring that he probably looked like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum, "No! I want to go home! Find another human to torment! Let me go!"

Maka shoved a finger into his chest, making him stumble backwards, "You don't get it! There is no "other human" for me! Do you know how many years I've looked for a human that matched with me? I need you!"

Soul paused, taking note of the desperation in her voice. He had been studying Maka for nearly a week now, and she was never anything but confident and sure of herself. He took a step forward, not yet ready to give up,

"How do you even know we match together? We're nothing alike!"

Maka looked torn, worrying her bottom lip with her teeth. She reached her hand out, and Soul instinctively took a step back. Maka gave him a pointed look before stepping forward and pressing her hand against his chest.

Soul looked incredulously down at her hand before he felt a fuzzy intrusion in his head. It felt like wisps of smoke curling around his brain, and it wasn't entirely bad. The buzz in his head increased, and he felt his chest tighten. He could feel her _inside of his head._

_"Soul?"_

He immediately jumped back, clutching his chest with both hands. His jaw was nearly slack as he stared at Maka. She smiled, all of the doubt seemingly wiped clean from her mind.

"I told you. We match. If it makes any more sense this way, it takes an immense amount of magic for me to change into my human form. Once I'm there, it's fine, but it usually takes me weeks to gather enough strength to transform. When you're around, it's as easy as flipping a switch. I told you, weapon souls amplify a Magic dragons strength. I've never found someone who could fit with me, but you fit without even trying."

Soul was still holding a death grip on his chest, surprised at how much emptier he felt without the feeling of Maka's intrusion. "What.. What was that?"

Maka grinned, putting her hands on her hips, "My soul. It connected with yours."

Soul sputtered, momentarily disarmed, "Your soul?!"

Maka nodded, stepping forward and slapping his hands away to put her hand on his chest again. He took a sharp intake of breath as he felt it again. The soft tug of something inside his head, nudging forward and wrapping around his thoughts.

He exhaled heavily as he watched Maka. She seemed content, her eyes closed and a satisfied smirk settling on her lips. He could feel her sweeping through him, a soft breeze that emanated from the left half of his chest and radiated down to his toes. He shivered as he realized he could feel his own wisps of consciousness in her head.

With a jolt, Maka stepped back, ending their connection. There had always been a sense of emptiness within Soul. He had known since he was small there there was something missing. Something off inside him, a hole that he wasn't able to determine the cause of.

To finally feel that empty space filled had left him reeling, and he wasn't sure what he was supposed to feel. Maka seemed to be waiting for him to speak, her eyes shining and wide. He supposed that same empty feeling had been inside Maka for all her life as well.

He cleared his throat, feeling a flush set upon his cheeks, "That was.. Different."

Maka beamed up at him, seemingly happy with that answer, "I know! It's a rush, right? That happened the first time you fell on the ledge. When you passed out, your soul searched out for mine and we connected. It's such a cool feeling! I've researched everything I could get my hands on about resonating with humans, but I had never felt it before. I feel so exhilarated and strong afterwards! You really do amplify everything!"

Soul just stared as she continued babbling, scratching the side of his head. Maka was off on a tangent, and he wasn't even sure she was talking to him anymore. He rolled his eyes and headed towards the basket where Maka kept their food. He grabbed a roll and a piece of smoked sausage, settling on one of the benches to watch her as he ate.

Maka flitted around the cave, grabbing up the loose parchment stuffed into corners and dragging it over to her bed. Soul tore off a piece of the meat and popped in into his mouth, gnawing at the bread. Maka was still muttering to herself, but Soul couldn't really catch much besides the occasional word. She seemed to be planning experiments, testing how much their bond increased her power.

Soul took another bite of bread and mouthed around the food, "What are you planning over there?"

Maka seemed to be jolted from her plans and glared at him, "Don't talk with your mouth full!"

Soul rolled his eyes and swallowed before replying, "Says the dragon. So what are you doing with all those maps?"

Maka grinned as she plopped down in the middle of the furs and gathered the maps around her, "Plotting a course. Now that I'm sure we can resonate when you're awake, I need to figure out the quickest route to get home and see Kid and the others. The path I was going to take before wont work now that I have a human, It's too dangerous."

Soul stood up, brushing crumbs off of the black tunic he was wearing, "What makes you think I'll come with you? Just because you talked to me through my brain doesn't mean I've changed my mind about this!"

Maka glanced behind her shoulder, flashing him a fierce grin, "What makes you think you have a choice?"

Soul had to stop himself from stepping backwards. It was always jarring to see a spark of the dragon inside her when she was in such a small form. "I-I'm serious. I still want to go home."

Maka shrugged, going back to her maps, "So do I. Tell me, Soul, doesn't it feel weird knowing what is was that was missing inside you?"

Soul raised an eyebrow, edging closer, "What do you mean?"

Maka drew her finger over the parchment, feigning indifference, "You heard me. There's a space in your soul that had always felt empty before now. When we resonated, my soul fit perfectly inside that little empty spot, and now it feels off, right?"

Soul went rigid, his muscles frozen as she spoke, "How do you know that?"

Maka continued tracing lines on the map, her shoulders slumping only slightly, "Because I had an empty spot, too, and your soul fit right there."

Soul ran a hand though his hair, eyeing the tiny blond in front of him. He was at a loss of what to say, and he didn't like it. He grunted and moved to sit back down on his bed.

"Whatever you say, Maka."

The late afternoon light was being shadowed by the lip of the cave, and Soul knew night was falling quickly. He burrowed under the blankets, sighing heavily. He knew Maka was right, but it was too much for him to deal with right now. His ears perked up as he heard Maka call out from the front of the cave,

"Sleep well, okay? We leave in the morning."

Soul didn't overlook the hopeful twang in her voice, and for some reason, it make him anxious. For the first time in nearly a week, he went to bed without planning a way to escape. He refused to acknowledge the steady ache in chest as he drifted off to sleep. He wasn't missing the presence of her soul, and he definitely wasn't hoping for another moment when she would connect with his soul and make him feel a little less empty.


End file.
